BOSA calls for 1 May to be renamed “non-Workers’ Day” as almost half of jobseekers cannot find work in SA

1 May 2024

The Eastern Cape is a special place for my family and me. My mother is from this province. I spent many of my childhood days here in Cofimvaba and I have always loved the natural beauty of this province. I am proud of this and of my Xhosa heritage. 

And this is why I am deeply hurt and profoundly saddened by the current state of the province and the failures of this government. Mandela did not spend 27 years in prison for this, and Oliver Tambo did not spend time in exile for this. Chris Hani and Bantu Steven Biko did not die for this.

The ANC government has failed the people of the Eastern Cape, and we must not sugar-coat this reality. 

The ANC has had a rich history of leadership in the Eastern Cape. Many great national leaders have come from this province. Josiah Gumede, Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu, Govan Mbeki, Thabo Mbeki, Chris Hani, Bantu Steven Biko, Nomzamo Winnie Madikizela, Sarah Baartman to name just a few.

Yet despite its amazing legacy of political giants, the government has failed the people of the Eastern Cape. We are faced with a paradox between the incredible history of this province and its current malaise – both under the ANC.

The Eastern Cape has one of the highest school dropout rates in the country. Last year’s matric results show that less than half (47.4%) of those who wrote grade 10 exams in 2019 matriculated in 2021. How is this acceptable?

More households in the Eastern Cape (42%) receive social grants as their main source of income compared to 37.3% that receive salaries – and 63.3% of households receive at least one form of a social grant. How is this acceptable?

Nearly half of the 39 municipalities in the Eastern Cape are on the brink of financial collapse and are being investigated by the Hawks for corruption, racking up R3.1bn in irregular expenditure last year. How is this acceptable?

The Eastern Cape is not poor or cursed. Rather the ANC here is stealing your money and failing to deliver to you the people. 

But, Fellow South Africans, the greatest crisis the country faces is unsustainable, long-term unemployment. And the Eastern Cape is the worst off.

The province has the highest unemployment rate in the entire country as 41.9% of work seekers cannot find a job. On the expanded definition, 47.1% of the Eastern Cape workforce is unemployed. Three-quarters of young people in the province are unemployed. There were at least 111,000 job losses in the Eastern Cape between October and December last year.

This shows the ANCs central role as a destroyer of jobs. In government, the party is unable to manage the economy and implement reforms that ignite real growth. 

More so, it refuses to properly fund job creation. Less than 1% of our country's entire budget (R22.2 billion) is allocated for job creation. This is woefully inadequate to address our country’s most pressing issue – the creation of new jobs.

Build One South Africa’s (BOSA) overriding mission is to ensure there is at least a job in every home. With an estimated 18 million households averaging 3.3 persons per household, to put a job in every home will require at least 2 million new jobs.

Without rapid economic growth in excess of 5%, there is little hope for the almost 11 million South Africans who are without a job or who have given up on finding one.

This is not just about numbers; it's a reflection of a deeply broken economy. Our resources are underutilized, and the potential of citizens remains untapped. We must address the root causes of this failure in order to Build One South Africa.

That is why today we make a national call to rename 1 May as “non-Workers’ Day” to highlight the plight of those without a job in South Africa. The struggle for work has today eclipsed the struggle for workers’ rights – and our national discourse should reflect that.

Following that, we outline BOSA’s credible plan to radically change the trajectory of our country by igniting rapid economic growth and job creation.

Our Jobs Plan is a blueprint to build a South Africa that works. Our Jobs Plan intends to foster and free up citizens to do the vital work of creating new jobs, new wealth and a vibrant, growing economy.

Our Jobs Plan has four parts. Growing the economy for jobs. Reforming education for jobs. Building a capable state for jobs. And creating a safe environment for jobs.

To support economic growth and job creation, our Jobs Plan spells out how BOSA will overhaul the education system to be modern and skills aligned, create a safer environment by radically reducing crime, and supporting this with a capable, efficient and merit-based government that gets on with doing the job.

Under this plan, within five years it is possible to rapidly grow the size of the economy, create millions of new jobs and educate and upskill young people to compete at the very highest level.

This is our core offer to voters in this year’s upcoming election.

Issued by Roger Solomons, BOSA Acting Spokesperson, 1 May 2024